


Jealousy Thy Name is Steve

by agrajag



Category: Tales of Arcadia (Cartoons), Trollhunters - Daniel Kraus & Guillermo del Toro
Genre: Bullying, First Dates, First Kiss, Getting Together, Jealousy, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-30
Updated: 2019-01-30
Packaged: 2019-10-19 12:53:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17601740
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agrajag/pseuds/agrajag
Summary: "So, yeah, it wasn'tthatbad," Eli said. "I mean, it couldn't be since I got a date out of it.""Wait a minute. You said a date?" Steve yelled."I don't want to advertise it to the whole school," Eli said in an exaggerated whisper."Oh, yeah. Right. Sorry. I just thought you meant, like, hanging out. But adatedate?""Is there another kind?"





	Jealousy Thy Name is Steve

**Author's Note:**

> timeline wise takes place after eli and steve find out about jim although in this eli doesn't suspect that aja and krel are aliens yet

Eli had never truly hated Steve, even when he was busy shoving him in lockers, because he knew bullies usually had problems of their own that they simply didn't know how to properly deal with. Not that he believed that was an excuse. He had wished he could have helped Steve with whatever the underlying issue was, instead of enabling him by doing his homework every time it was shoved in his face, but he had been too busy studying the strange occurrences of Arcadia Oaks. Standing up for himself was going to put him out of commission. (Yeah, that was the nice way to put it.) And then, well, Creepslayerz was born, and he had thought that might the answer to both of his conundrums. 

Steve had originally insisted on keeping a cover, though that hardly lasted a week. Strangely, no one seemed the least bit phased that they were friends now, though Eli supposed that wasn't even close to the weirdest thing most of their classmates had seen recently (even if most were still in denial about creeps). He had expected Steve to open up now that they were really friends, but he only ever talked about creeps. (And sometimes Aja.) Normally Eli would be ecstatic, and he definitely had no qualms going back and forth with Steve about what was arguably his favorite topic, but he felt like friendships were supposed to be built on more than that. Now, that wasn't to say that Steve didn't _listen_ to _Eli_ talk about other things. He talked about his mom and how she had gotten overly protective since he had come out and that's why he snapped at her sometimes. Steve even offered advice (pretty darn good advice) and Eli just knew he had something that must trouble him as well.

Baby steps, he told himself. It was enough that Steve talked to him at school (even sat at Eli's table at lunch!) and went on creep slaying missions with him. And sometimes, if there were no creeps around or they were finished up early enough, they'd go back to Eli's house and watch a movie. Creeps might have been Eli's passion, but he was starting to like those nights the best. Especially when Steve would get sleepy halfway through and rest his head on Eli's shoulder. And, okay, maybe Eli wanted Steve to open up about certain things for some selfish reasons. Like, say, if he might be into guys. Because Eli may have developed a major crush on his friend. Steve wasn't even his type! He usually fell for the heroes of his favorite monster movies. (But Steve had been his hero several times over by then and Eli didn't _want_ to be a damsel in distress, but it appeared he had a complex.) Steve was so nice, though, now. Holding open doors for Eli, buying more supplies for his creep board, and picking him up for school on his Vespa. Oh, and did Eli mention how tactile Steve was? Sure, there was the resting his head on Eli's shoulder, but he also would hug Eli for literally no reason, pick him up and spin him around when he was excited, and even sometimes held Eli's hand!

Yeah, he did talk about Aja a lot, but it could be possible that either a. He thought he needed another cover or b. He had a crush on her and Eli (because Eli knew all too well how easy it was to crush on several people at once) and Eli only had to make his move before her. (No offense to Aja. She was super cool, and Eli actually wanted to be her friend as well.) But he didn't want to make a move and ruin what he and Steve had if it turned out he didn't like him. Or, well, didn't like boys in general. Which is what led to him trying to get Steve (oh so casually) to agree or disagree about how good looking a guy was.

His first attempt was to point out the handsome hero in a movie they were watching one night, but of course Steve had fallen asleep. (The one time Eli wasn't happy to have his head on his shoulder.) Once, while creep hunting, Eli asked Steve what he thought about Krel, and that had been a dumb idea because it just led to him gushing about Aja. A conversation at lunch one day about celebrity crushes got awkward when Steve said he couldn't really 'like' someone unless he knew them. (Though a traitorous part of Eli's brain was like 'That works! He knows you after all!') Eli was starting to lose hope he'd find out if he had a chance short of straight (and, oh, the irony) up asking him, but he knew from experience that was a sure fire way to get Steve to clam up.

Then, in gym class one fateful day, Steve's old buddies trick to pick on Eli for being gay. It had never been a secret, but it appeared they had only now picked up on it as potential ammunition against him. Tough luck for them. He knew how to stand up for himself now, but right before he was about to unleash his comeback, someone stepped in to start yelling at them. For a second, he thought it was Steve. (Even though Steve wasn't in gym with him this semester. He just had a way of _knowing_ when Eli was in hot water.) Oh no. If it was Steve, he was going to start blushing and then _everyone_ would know he had a crush on Steve. It was only for a second, though, because then he registered the accent. It was Krel. They had only exchanged a few words here and there, but he had stepped in to defend him. Eli was confused. Until he really started paying attention to what he was saying.

"You people on this pl... in this country judge someone on who they find attractive? Your concept of gender determining worth is mind boggling to begin with. Then which gender you are attracted to filters in? This is absurd. In Cantalopia, it doesn't matter. No one judged me for being attracted to the same gender. I think you should all take a page from our book."

The bullies had slowly backed away during Krel's speech once they had heard several big words, but Krel still looked proud -- like he had taught them a lesson -- when he turned to face Eli.

"I hope I used that saying correctly," he said, mostly to himself. "I'm sorry. Are you alright, Eli?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm alright," Eli said, stuttering slightly. He had noticed that Krel was handsome, but he hadn't _truly_ noticed and now he was oh so close. Darn, he _did_ have a complex. Good to know it wasn't limited to Steve. "You didn't have to do that Krel. I would have been fine. But thank you."

"I couldn't allow a fellow _raron_ to be in peril."

"A wh... _oh_. Is that the  Cantalopian word? So you weren't just saying that to get them to leave me alone? You're gay too?"

"Yes. I would never say something so lightly. I might not have much interest in courtship, but it's still an important part of me."

"No inter... oh." Eli frowned. "Okay. Well, thank you again, Krel."

"Eli, wait!" Krel called after him, but Eli had already ran halfway to the locker room. He was far away enough to pretend he hadn't heard him.

He didn't know why he felt disappointed. He didn't have a crush on Krel. Well, he had used Krel during one of his conversations with Steve when he could have picked any of their other classmates he found attractive, which might mean deep down he had a little bit of a crush on him. And, now thinking about it, he _did_ find Krel's mysterious nature appealing. But Steve was probably straight, Krel wasn't interested in dating, and Eli was always going to be alone. He was contemplating throwing himself in one of the lockers when he heard someone else enter the room.

"Eli?"

Oh flip. It was Krel. Now he _really_ wanted to shove himself in a locker in order to hide, but there was no time.

"Eli? Oh, there you are." Krel sat down on the bench next to him. "Eli, you ran away before I could finish. You see, I was never interested because I never really met someone as passionate about their interests as I. But I've seen how passionate you are."

Eli looked up at Krel and smiled softly.

"Oh, uh, thank you?"

"I don't have much free time, but when I do... would you like to get a burrito with me?"

Eli couldn't really handle overly spicy foods. He didn't have a cast iron stomach like Toby but "Yes!" he said without thinking. He'd deal with any consequences later. "I'd really like that. Do you wanna exchange numbers?"

"I do not think our phones are compatible," Krel said, giving Eli's phone a weary look. "I'll just come over to your residence and let you know when is a good time for me."

"Wait, Krel, how do you know where I live?" Eli shouted after him, but it was Krel's turn to run off.

Eli's voice reverberated in the locker room, sounding eerie. Yeah, he was ready to stop hiding. To say he wasn't a fan of the locker room would be putting it lightly. He was feeling better enough to go back to class, but he wasn't exactly ready to deal with everyone's judgmental stares. He knew in another couple minutes, Coach Lawrence would come to check on him to see if he was alright, and he'd ask if he could head outside and run laps for the rest of the period. He hadn't anticipated Steve's science class to be out there studying the plants growing around Arcadia Oaks High's campus. Steve managed to give his teacher the slip and joined Eli. He barely broke a sweat, so he didn't have to worry about his clothes, unlike Eli who could run in short bursts just fine, but for half a period? Well, it was definitely a work out. Especially since Steve wanted to talk. He knew what outside laps meant (considering he'd been the cause of outside laps quite a bit himself the previous year). Naturally, then, he made Eli tell him what had happened.

"So, yeah, it wasn't _that_ bad," Eli said, only panting slightly. "I mean, it couldn't be since I got a date out of it, but I still couldn't really face everyone after everything. I was still embarrassed. You know how it goes."

It took Eli a moment to notice Steve wasn't running next to him like he had been a moment before. He stopped and looked back to see Steve had stopped nearly 20 feet behind him.

"Wait a minute. You said a date?" he yelled.

"I don't want to advertise it to the whole school," Eli said in an exaggerated whisper as he ran back to Steve. "I already told you, I'm embarrassed enough as it is."

"Oh, yeah. Right. Sorry," Steve said as he shook his head, almost as a way to reprimand himself for not thinking before he shouted. "I just thought you meant, like, hanging out. But a _date_ date."

"Is there another kind?" Eli muttered before turning on Steve and pointing a finger at his chest. "Why do _you_ care so much?" he asked, louder now, so Steve could hear him. "You're not going to... too..."

"No! No," Steve said quickly. "I would never... I mean, New Steve now would never make fun of you. For anything. But even Old Steve wouldn't for _that_. I'm so sorry I did make fun of you in the past. I hope you know that. It's just... Krel? I don't think we can trust him."

"You literally have a crush on his sister. If we can trust her, can't we trust him?"

Steve's face turned bright red.

"Aja?! What?! No! I don't have a crush on her."

"You talk about her _all_ the time," Eli said as he crossed his arms and gave Steve A Look.

"Okay, sure. I mean, it's 'cause I admire her. She's strong, for one. Besides, I've never heard you talk about Krel. So, you're disproving your own point."

"Well, being gay in a small town only leaves me so many options, you know."

"But you still don't have to settle for the first guy to ask you out! There's other options, and you deserve the best, Pepperbuddy."

"Oh, well, thank you Steve," Eli said as his face softened. He should have known that Steve's worry was coming from his genuine concern for his friend. "Hey, thanks for looking out for me. But it's not like guys are lining up to date me."

"They're crazy, then. You're smart, brave, funny, dedicated, passionate, and really cute. Any guy would be lucky to be your boyfriend."

Eli had already felt like he needed to sit down from all the running, but now it was as if the air had been knocked from him. He thought he was going to fall over, but Steve luckily caught his arm and managed to steady him. When he noticed he was still holding onto Eli, he blushed almost as brightly as when Eli accused him of having a crush on Aja. Was this it? The sign Eli was looking for? Should he make his move? But then what about Krel? That wasn't fair to him. No, as much as Eli adored Steve, he couldn't do that to the new student. He was already having trouble fitting into Arcadia Oaks High; Eli couldn't make his experience all the more worse.

"Well, those 'other guys' lost their chance, then, I guess," he said with a shrug. "I mean, unless my date with Krel doesn't go well. We'll have to see."

"Oh," Steve said, and he definitely sounded disappointed. Eli didn't want to feel happy about that, but he couldn't help it. Steve thought he could give a teen movie second act speech and win Eli over, but it wasn't going to be that easy. "I better get back to running before Coach catches me. I'll see you tonight for patrol?"

"Yeah, I'll be there."

Steve held out his hand and Eli completed the Creepslayerz symbol.

And so that night they went on patrol. And then the night after that. Sometimes there were some goblins or gnomes to take care of, but with the Trollhunters and Creepslayerz taking turns patrolling, Arcadia Oaks almost seemed safe. So he and Steve would head back to his house for a movie, as usual, and Eli would hope and pray that Steve would doze off. His feelings were so conflicted now that he was also eagerly awaiting to have his date with Krel. (And waiting. _And waiting._ )

Finally, one Saturday afternoon, there was a rapid knocking on Eli's door. Dramatically different from Steve's (unexpectedly) timid knock. It could have been someone for his mom, but he obviously wished it was for him. He went running to answer the door before she could get there and smiled brightly when it _was_ Krel standing there.

"Hello Eli," he said. "I hope you are in need for sustenance. Stuart's taco truck awaits, if you care to join me."

"Yes! Of course! Let me grab my back pack."

"And maybe tell your mom that you're leaving," his mom shouted from somewhere in the house, and he honestly had no idea how she was always doing that. Like, how did she even _hear_ him if she hadn't' been in the front room?

"Well, you obviously know," he shouted back as he picked up his back pack from where he had dropped it after school the day before. He ran outside and slammed the front door before she could scold him for being flippant. "Alright. I'm ready."

"Your relationship with your mother is... odd," Krel said, but he was smiling.

It was nice knowing you weren't the only 'weird' one, Eli supposed. (He had been excited himself when Steve enjoyed his weird monster movies. And he really had to stop thinking about Steve.) He thought that the moment should have set his heart aflutter, but sadly, it didn't. He still reached out to take Krel's hand as they walked to the food truck. Conversation flowed freely between them, although they mostly talked about school. When they arrived at the truck, Krel offered suggestions when Eli admitted he couldn't really handle spicy foods, but they each payed for their own meal. They ate mostly in silence, and while it was comfortable, there were no 'stolen glances' between the two. They had each other laughing practically the entire way back to Eli's house, though this time they weren't holding hands. Eli paused at the door, feeling awkward for the first time that afternoon. Which in itself was awkward.

"I had a great time," he said, digging the toe of his sneaker into the welcome mat.

"As did I," Krel responded. They could both hear the unspoken 'but' at the end of their sentences and they started laughing. "Is this... what best friends are like?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Eli admitted. "I don't have the best track record when it comes to friends, best or otherwise. But I would definitely like that. Being your best friend, I mean."

"Lively!" Krel said as he jumped up and pumped his fist. "I must say, I quite like this friend thing as well. So, I'll see you at school, friend."

Eli laughed some more at Krel's enthusiasm before saying, "Yeah. I'll see you on Monday!" He waved goodbye and headed inside -- only to be ambushed by, not just his mom, but Steve as well. Though Steve did more 'standing and looking disapproving' then ambushing, it was still a shock to see him there, and that was an ambush in itself. Eli glanced over at the clock and holy cow. He had _really_ lost track of time. He was supposed to have been ready for patrol half an hour ago.

"Elijah Leslie Pepeprjack, where were you?" his mom scolded. "We were worried sick."

"Mom," Eli whined, drawing the O out. "I'd told you I was going to lunch with a friend."

And that's when the Pepperjacks started talking over each other. Steve slowly backed up and his legs hit the edge of the couch, causing him to fall softly onto the cushions.

"That was weeks ago."

"He wasn't sure when he'd be free."

"And Steve informed me this boy isn't _just_ a friend."

"He is!"

"If you're dating, I have to meet him first."

"Well, _now_ he is."

Eli's mom went quiet then before swooping in to give him a hug.

"Oh, honey. I'm so sorry. He doesn't know what he's missing."

"Wow. A minute ago you wanted to give him the shovel talk. Now it seems like you think he isn't good enough," Eli joked.

"Well, he isn't if he's too dumb to want to date you," Steve said, speaking up for the first time since Eli got home.

"Oh my God, you're both over reacting. Me and Krel had a great time. We both just realized that we're better off as friends. I actually don't think he's made any friends since he moved here, so I think this is a good thing."

"Alright, honey," his mom said, running her hand through his hair. (She always said that it stuck up too much.) "I'm sorry for how I reacted. You know I only want you to be safe, right?"

"I know."

"And you also know the right boy _will_ come along eventually." Eli groaned. "I'm serious. And when he does, I want to meet him first. I'd still like to meet Krel, too, if that's alright with you. Friends are just as important."

Eli looked over to Steve at that and smiled. He hated to admit it, but his mom was right. He still had a feeling that Steve possibly liked him back, but if it turned out that he was wrong, he was just as lucky to have him as a friend.

"Okay Mom. Me and Steve are gonna go up to my room now, okay? But we can talk about this more? Later? When we don't have an audience."

"Of course. Go ahead. You boys have fun."

Steve started to protest as Eli practically dragged him up the stairs.

"But what about..." He paused until the door was firmly shut behind them. "What about creep slaying?"

"I think it's okay if we skip one day. I thought we could hang out today."

Steve smiled.

"Yeah, okay."

"And maybe you could tell me why you ratted me out to my mom."

Steve froze, one leg on Eli's bed, the other still planted on the floor.

"I told you I don't trust Krel!" he shouted after he started to get his bearings. "When I got here and your mom said you were with someone and hadn't come back, I don't know. I guess I panicked."

Eli walked over and pushed Steve the rest of the way onto the bed.

"Calm down. I'm just teasing you. I mean, I'm a _little_ mad that you're being so judgmental toward Krel, but thank you for looking out for me. Again."

"Of course, Eli. I care about you," Steve said, as if it _needed_ to be said. Though Eli realized Steve might think he _didn't_ know. That he might still be afraid of him -- deep down.

"I know you do. But caring about me means trusting me too."

"I know," Steve said with a sigh. "Just... thinking about you with Krel made me angry. And I haven't been getting angry like I used to. So then that made me scared. What if I went back to Old Steve? I don't want to go back to that. Though, the only person I wanted to hit was Krel," he added, quickly. "I never would do that to you ever again."

Never mind. His mom knew nothing, Eli though. Friends schriends. He crawled onto his bed with Steve, reaching over to lit his chin with his finger.

"I think you're jealous," he said quietly.

"Maybe," Steve huffed, refusing to meet his eyes.

Eli chuckled.

"Like how I get jealous when you talk about Aja."

"Oh," Steve said, finally looking up, allowing Eli to see the goofy grin on his face. "Wait. You shouldn't, though. Remember? I told you that you deserved the best."

"What could be better than one of my best friends who's saved my life on numerous occasions? Who listens to me when I rant about creeps? Who braved my mom because he was worried about me?"

Steve laughed.

"Okay. You have a point. I guess I have to work on my _actual_ self confidence. You wanna help me?"

"Of course."

"I mean..." Steve blushed. "As my boyfriend?"

"Yes!" Eli exclaimed, throwing himself at Steve. It hardly constituted as a hug (it was more like an attack) but Eli couldn't care less. Steve didn't seem to mind either, considering how tactile of a person he was. He simply held Eli close to him as he left chaste kisses on the top of his head.

"I'll do my best to be the guy you deserve," he whispered into Eli's hair.

Shaking his head, Eli leaned up and kissed Steve, properly, on the lips.

"You already are."


End file.
